The Bet
by soul of fyre158
Summary: [If I win, you have to kiss me. In front of everyone.] [Are you insane?] [Completely.] Onesided Takari. All diehard fans, be forewarned and please don't hate me. AU. OC.
1. Chapter 1

It was the famous Takaishi grin. Reserved for special occasions and delivered to special people, the giver carefully evaluated the situation before flashing the weapon to obtain the desired effect. After doing so, the smile-r always ended up having both the full interest and consent of the smile-e. It never failed.

Though sometimes, Yagami Hikari very much wished it did.

One would think that being aquatinted with such a person as long as she had would help in developing a strong resistance to it. On the contrary, it was just worse for her. If Takaishi Takeru wanted to do something, all he had to do was smile pleadingly and Hikari would find herself his accomplice. It worked not only on her, but also won him the assistance of several others such as his friends at school, his brother, and both his mother and father.

And Takeru knew it.

He knew his power and he tried not to take advantage of it.

Not too much anyway.

But it was devilish fun.

At the moment, Hikari found herself slowly collapsing under his powerful persuasion as he cheerfully discussed his plans for the evening. He wanted to go to the winter school carnival, which took place every year with the help of the students and faculty, as well as other partnerships in the community. They went every year, mostly because they had to, being assigned as the staff in most occasions. But this year they got out of it (with grace from above) and neither of them had revealed the slightest interest in attending the carnival. Until now.

"Come on, Hikari, it'll be fun. You know it will," he added, remembering the other times they had went.

"I know, I just want to have a break this year." She knew it would never work, and though she loved the carnivals, it really was the one time in ages she would have the apartment to herself, without having to do any work. She had been looking forward to sleeping and working on her scrapbook for her photos. She wanted some time at home. Tomorrow was last day of term and then winter vacation, and exams had finished today. She wanted to relax with her cat.

"You can have plenty of breaks. It's only one night."

"But there's a movie coming on…."

"Are you really going to make me go alone?" _Aha_. He had her. It was then that he chose to place his Takaishi Smile into the argument, knowing it would grab immediate results in his favour.

She hated it when he did that.

"Oh, fine. Why not."

He grinned.

"Great! Want me to pick you up?"

Hikari smiled.

"It's okay. I can meet you at the entrance."

"Whatever you want," he looked thrilled. "You'll be glad I talked you into it, Hikari. Just wait." He waved as he turned the corner to his apartment.

More like smiled her into it. Still, hanging out with Takeru was fun. She couldn't say she was disappointed about agreeing to join him.

She shivered, pulling her scarf around her neck closer to keep her warm. She quickened her pace; the sooner she got home, the sooner she could regain feeling in her legs.

Her brother was sprawled on the living room floor when she came home. He was lying on his back, arms spread out and looking like the very definition of misery. His schoolbag had been dropped by his feet, his uniform unbuttoned to allow oxygen and his brown hair even messier than usual. The radio was on, depressing slow songs crooning from the speakers in haunting, soft melodies. Craning his neck a little to see who had wandered into his claimed territory, his head feel back on with a thud after discovering it was his sister.

"Hi. You came back early," she noticed, puling off her gloves.

Yagami Taichi tried to shrug, but found it took too much of his energy and gave up. He yawned instead.

"How were exams?" she asked.

"Kill me."

"That bad?"

"Kill me, please."

"It can't be worth your death."

"Yes, it can. Mom's going to kill me. Then Dad will dig me up and kill me again. Save them the trouble and kill me now, as a last favour to your dear brother."

"What happened?"

"I blanked. Completely. I swear I flunked. I don't need a calculator to prove that." He moaned. "I am so dead."

"You're not being fair to yourself. How can you just go blank?"

"Who knows how the mind works? Ah, don't answer—that was one of the questions…. Somebody shoot me…."

"I'm sure it's not as bad as you're making it seem."

"It's much, much _worse_," Taichi assured in a whimper, shutting his eyes.

The doorbell rang, and Hikari turned around to answer it, saving her reply for later. Taichi's childhood friend, Takenouchi Sora, stood in the doorway, rubbing her hands to keep them warm even though they had gloves to cover them. The redhead smiled at her.

"Hey. I hoped you were home."

"Hi, Sora. Come on in," she held the door open while the girl scurried inside, slipping off her shoes. "How were exams?"

"Great. At least I hope I did well," she admitted. "Is Taichi here?"

"Well—,"

His sorrowful words proved his existence: "Kill me."

Sora winced.

"Exams?" she whispered to Hikari who nodded. She straightened, peering into the living room to see her friend slowly dying on the floor. "Hey, Taichi."

A mumbled reply sounded, "Kill me, please."

"You can't hide in here forever," Sora said wisely. "Come on, let's go out."

"Good idea. Maybe I'll throw myself into the river."

Hikari shook her head.

"I think it would be best if you guys went where he didn't have to think about school."

"But I've only got tickets to your school carnival. I thought we could all go together before tomorrow- like Last Day of Term Eve or something. Come on, Taichi, we can go anyway." Sora tried, "We'll find Koushiro and Yamato, too."

"I don't wanna…."

"If it's going to be your last night alive, don't you want to make it exciting?"

"No."

"Taichi—,"

"You think I'll get food poisoned?"

"It's possible."

"I'll get my coat."

Sora rolled her eyes, but shared a grin with Hikari. At least he was up.

"You want to come with us?"

"I'll come half-way; I want to stop by the store. Let me change into something else. I'll be right back."

Hikari hurried to her room, choosing jeans a light pink turtleneck. She fastened on her bracelet, combing her hair and re-clipping her bangs to keep them out of her eyes. Throwing on her camera around her neck, she checked herself in the mirror again, debating on whether or not to redo anything.

"Come on, Hikari. Who're you trying to impress?" Taichi sounded rather irritated, desperate for a chance to fake his death so his parents wouldn't have to make it into reality.

"I'm coming," she applied some light lipstick and rushed back into the hallway. "Okay, I'm ready."

Thankfully, Taichi didn't realise the make-up. "About time…" he muttered, opening the door for the girls. "Planning my death is hard enough without you two trying to delay it. Have some consideration. These are my last hours."

"So sorry," Sora said.

-

Ishida Yamato leaned against the railing, looking very bored.

"Where are they?" he demanded of his friend, who shrugged in reply. "We even got here before them, and _they're_ the ones who called us."

Izumi Koushiro sighed, looking up and down the street. He nodded a hello to some friends from school, still on the lookout for the others. He recognised one, finally, and waved the young blonde over.

Takeru grinned at them, brightening immediately after seeing the two, "Didn't expect to see you two here."

"There's supposed to be two more of us," Koushiro said.

"Where they are is a different issue," Yamato added, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Why are you here, anyway? I thought you said you wanted a break from the carnival this year."

"I did. But something came up."

"Like what?" his brother raised an eyebrow suspiciously. Takeru avoided Yamato's gaze.

"Nothing important."

"What is it?"

"Who is it?" Koushiro corrected, guessing the motive.

Yamato grinned.

"Ah, I see. Little brother's got himself a girlfriend, has he?"

Takeru flushed.

"No." He paused. "Not yet."

Koushiro laughed.

"Like brother, like brother," he observed, ignoring the look on the older blonde's face. "Careful, Takeru. Yamato has a certain reputation you've got to live up to now."

The youngest of the three glowed redder.

"I'm not going to do anything."

"Famous last words," a new voice joined the group. They looked up to see Taichi walking towards them, a sly look on his face. His smirk widened. "You heartbreaker, you. I've taught you well."

"This from the guy who can't land himself with a girl longer than a week," Yamato said.

Taichi shot him a look.

"Where's Sora?" Yamato asked, looking around. "I thought she was with you."

"She was. She and Hikari were stopped by some of their giggling girl friends. I had to get away. I want to die a man."

Koushiro snorted.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Taichi demanded. "And what isn't Takeru going to do?"

"He isn't going to be caught hanging around you guys," Takeru stated.

"What's wrong with us?"

"Takeru's trying to hit on a girl," Yamato explained bluntly. His brother's eyes widened in shock.

"I am not!"

"Yeah, you are. That's what you just got through telling Koushiro and me."

"That is not what I said—,"

"No, he's just going to flirt with her," Taichi decided.

"Huge difference, you know," Koushiro added, smiling.

Takeru stared at them.

"You wouldn't embarrass me."

"Would we?" Taichi asked his best friend, who shrugged and turned to repeat the question to Koushiro.

"I don't know," Koushiro admitted, "it could be fun."

"You wouldn't dare. Please don't."

"Why, what's so important?" Yamato asked, grinning.

"Who is this girl anyway?" Koushiro wanted to know.

"Nobody."

"Strange name."

"It's just a girl from my homeroom."

"_It_?" Yamato asked. "You mean she's not even a girl? _Or_ a guy?"

"I meant _she_!" Takeru looked frustrated, his ears a bright pink.

"That's right, defend your woman," Taichi grinned. "Any questions before we unleash you to the public?"

"Please don't follow me—,"

"Some advice, little brother," Yamato interrupted him. "Stay calm. You have to make it seem like you really don't care what she says. Be casual. Be cool."

"Not too cool, though. It's freezing enough as it is," Taichi added.

"When in doubt, use your secret weapon," Yamato reminded.

Takeru stopped and looked at him, a slow grin appearing on his face.

"The Takaishi Smile," the brothers chorused in unison, understanding (Yamato's version- the Ishida Smile- produced the same effect).

Taichi sighed.

"I wish I had that."


	2. Chapter 2

"Hey Hikari!" a young girl with curly, brown hair waved at her.

Hikari smiled at her. "Hi, Sayuri. Aren't you working at the carnival?"

"Yeah. I'm running a little late, actually. I was supposed to be there ten minutes ago. Are you going?"

Hikari nodded.

"Yeah, but I want to buy something to get some change first. They hardly ever take full bills anymore."

Iahii Sayuri rolled her eyes.

"I know. It's not like people walk around with change weighing down their pockets. Well, not a lot anyway. Need a companion?"

"Don't you have to get to your booth?"

"I'm already late. It isn't going to matter."

"Then I wouldn't mind one."

Sayuri smiled as they stepped into the small convenience store. A girl was stationed behind the counter. She had long purple hair and an apron on. She leaned over the counter, flipping through a magazine with interest.

"Hi, Miyako," Hikari greeted cheerfully. The girl looked up and grinned.

"Hey. I thought you'd be at the carnival."

"I'm going there now. I need some change though."

"Got you covered. Might I interest you in our splendid selection of chocolate bars? We have three choices: Hershey's milk chocolate, Hershey's milk chocolate, and the best one of all: Hershey's milk chocolate."

Hikari laughed as Inoue Miyako pointed to the tiny grouping of candy on the left side of the counter.

"Tough decision," Sayuri remarked.

"Isn't it? I think I'll have the Hershey's milk chocolate. Make that three."

"Brilliant choice," Miyako assured, handing them to her. She accepted the bill and cashed out the change, substituting some of it into coins. "That should be enough for a few carnival games."

"Thanks. Are you coming?"

Miyako shook her head sadly.

"Maybe tomorrow evening, but I have to work today. My dad took my computer hostage until I finish my shift."

"Well, maybe we can go together tomorrow?"

"I'd love to. It's better than going alone."

Hikari waved as they left. She handed one of the bars to Sayuri, who accepted graciously.

"She's right you know, it is better to go with someone to the carnival. Lucky you have me," Sayuri winked.

"Actually, I'm meeting up with someone."

"Really? Who? Is it a _guy_?" she added the last question slyly.

"It's just Takeru."

"Well, it's about time he asked you out."

Hikari blushed.

"He didn't ask me out. This isn't a date."

"Looks like one to me. You did buy him candy," she pointed to the spare bar. "And you're wearing a new shirt plus lipstick. If it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck- then it's a date."

Hikari rolled her eyes.

"I didn't have anything else to wear, I wanted to try the lipstick before it hardened into rock, and I always buy candy for people. We're just friends, Sayuri. Nothing else."

"To the distress of the entire school. They're all _dying_ to see Takeru hook up with someone. He never even looks at girls. Well, not in the starved way some guys do. And you! You, all the guys are _pinning_ to get your attention. I won't be surprised if someone kidnaps you at the carnival."

Hikari laughed, shaking her head.

"We're friends and nothing more. Sorry to disappoint you."

"I'd rather you take him, to be honest. If he had you to use up his time, I might actually make better scores in English than him," Sayuri remarked wistfully.

They reached the entrance by then, finding Takeru standing and chatting reluctantly to his brother, Taichi, and Koushiro.

"Are we interrupting something?" Sayuri asked, causing Takeru to start, surprised.

"Hikari," he said, "you're finally here. I thought someone kidnapped you." He looked over at the other girl. "Oh. It's _you_."

The obvious rivalry between the twowas the talk of the school, especiallyin the subject of English. Both were fantastically impressive writers, and competed to score the highest in every exam. They had taken finals that day in school, but the score had not been posted yet. That resulted in a very apparent and bitter tension.

"It's me and I ranked first, end of story. Who are your friends?"

"No one," Takeru interrupted Yamato as he started to introduce himself. He looked at Hikari. "Want to go in?"

"Sure. Oh, I bought you a candy bar."

Yamato poked his best friend in the side.

"She bought him a candy bar," he whispered.

"I can see that," Taichi shot back.

"Shut up," Koushiro snapped at the two of them, earning a funny look from Sayuri's direction.

"I'm going to go to my booth," she said slowly, eyeing the three (to her) strangers cautiously. Some how the one with the mop of brown hair put her on guard. This was going to be an interesting carnival if those teens were going to hang around. And why did that blonde keep smiling like that? What was he trying to do?

"You're in charge of a booth?" Takeru asked sceptically. "Is that wise? Wouldn't you bite off some kid's head for missing the target?"

Hikari poked him in warning.

"Come on, let's be civil. We'll walk you to your booth, Sayuri."

"Sure."

"Stay here," Takeru ordered the three elder teens, who looked confused and hurt at the command.

"You know, I'm starting to think he doesn't like it when I follow him around," Yamato said.

-

Takeru was trying to explain the historical evolution of carnival booths to the two of them as they made their way to the booth. But an audience of two bored, uninterested teenage girls didn't prove to be any good and he ended up explaining it to himself while the other two talked. Sayuri kept trying to give Hikari a conspicuous look, hoping she would take the hint and make a move on Takeru (who had no idea he had lost his audience). Hikari kept on returning the gesture with a conspicuous look of her own, mentally begging her to stop before Takeru saw.

They reached the booth eventually, and Sayuri interrupted him in mid-sentence.

"Your skills are purely oratory. Just because you say it, doesn't mean you can write it."

"I most certainly can—,"

"Remember guys? Civil?" Hikari broke in before it got ugly. She pulled on Takeru's sleeve. "Let's go on a ride. It might warm us up."

"Good idea. Got any change?"

"That was what the chocolate was for." Hikari produced the spare money proudly.

"Great. How about you get the tickets and I'll get some cotton candy or something?"

"Okay. I'll meet you by the Ferris wheel?"

"It's a date."

Hikari winced involuntarily at the word, but Takeru didn't see it. She nodded and smiled, moving in the direction of the ticket stand.

He turned back to Sayuri who had disappeared under the booth to find some target boards.

"You really hate my writing?"

"I like your writing," came the mumbled reply. "I just don't like you."

"Honest person, aren't you?"

"What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing."

Be casual. Be cool. Act like you don't care what she says. He couldn't believe he was actually listening to his brother's ridiculous logic. He groaned silently, then forced himself to keep his cool. How did all the other guys make it look so easy?

"The darts game, huh?" he noticed the purpose of her booth.

Her head popped up over the side of the counter.

"What's your problem? You want to go ahead and leave already? I have work, you know, I don't need you breathing down my neck and playing 20 Questions."

"Question 16," he began. She narrowed her eyes and retreated under the booth again, trying to ignore him. "I bet I can beat you at any game in this carnival."

She gave a hallow laugh.

"I can beat you at anything, hands down. Don't embarrass yourself, Takaishi."

"Obviously we can't figure out who got the highest score in English until later, and we might as well compete on something else. I don't feel comfortable when I'm not."

"So I have to agree to make you comfortable? Forget it. I've got a job to do."

"I'm serious. I am king of all carnival games. Go ahead and pick one and we'll bet on it. There's no reason to—I'll win—but to make it entertaining…."

"What are we betting on?"

He pushed his hands into his pockets and forcing himself to appear calm, experimenting with the beginnings of the Takaishi Smile.

"If I win, you have to go out with me."

Her head hit the booth.

"_What_?"

"If I win, you have to go out with me. On a real date, dinner and everything."

"Are you _insane_?"

"Completely."

She watched, eyes narrowed. He could feel his face burning and hoped his hat was covering enough of his cheeks to hide it. He wondered if she would lash out in a violent attack from the unexpected proposition. How _did _other guys manage this?

"And if I win?" she asked slowly.

"I don't know. You make it up. That's your side of the bet."

"Fine," she straightened all the way. "If I win, you have to kiss me."

He blinked.

"_What_?"

"If I win, you have to kiss me. In front of everyone at school."

"_Every_—? Are you _insane_?"

"Absolutely."

He frowned suspiciously.

"You're on."

"Then it's a bet?" She held out a steady hand hidden by a mitten, eyes not leaving his face. He took it.

"It's a bet."

"You're going down, Takaishi. I've never lost a single carnival game."

"There's a first for everything."

"Prepare for defeat and humiliation."

"Prepare for your first customer," Takeru replied solemnly, stepping out of the way to let a young boy wander up to the booth. Sayuri shot him a look of warning and he flashed his secret weapon, but she had already turned her attention on the boy to notice and become another victim of the dangerous Smile.


	3. Chapter 3

"There you are," Taichi said once Sora came into hearing distance. "That only took you forever."

"Where've you been?" Yamato asked, pausing a moment to kiss her hello.

"I was talking to some friends," she said, pulling her scarf around tighter. "And if I recall correctly, I told a certain someone to wait for me." She watched Taichi pointedly after this statement.

The brown-haired boy shrugged. "I was bored."

Sora rolled her eyes, pushing her hands into the pockets of her thick winter coat. Yamato wrapped an arm around her in an attempt to warm her up. It didn't help much, she observed mentally, but he was looking too pleased at having thought about the kind gesture for her to tell him that.

Koushiro said, "So are we all ready to get inside now?"

"Yes," Sora shivered. "There's got to be some kind of hot drink."

"There's hot chocolate," Koushiro said, catching a glimpse of the drinks stand. "Taichi, go buy some."

"Hey, how come I have to buy it?"

"Because. Now go," Yamato waved a hand at the stand.

Grumbling, the teen went anyway, earning himself a burned finger from the scalding cups. Wincing, he carried them back as carefully as he could and the rest took their share, grateful for the immediate warmth to their hands. Obviously, they knew better than to burn themselves.

"So what do you want to do?" Yamato asked his girlfriend after a few sips.

Sora looked around.

"I don't mind. And no, Taichi," she interrupted him immediately and he frowned, quickly supplying another option:

"There's the House of Mirrors," he said.

She shook her head.

"Ferris Wheel?" Koushiro suggested.

"After we finish drinking maybe. How about one of those booths?" She pointed at a darts game. "Yamato, play for me, please?"

"Why?" He was horrible at carnival games. That was Takeru's area of expertise.

"I want a stuffed animal. Please? Win one for me?"

"Your ladylove beckons," Taichi said, grinning and knowing full well Yamato's disturbing lack of athletic ability outside the martial arts world—and even there it had been a while.

"Go on, Yamato, make us proud," Koushiro urged, grinning himself.

The blonde shot both of them a look then quickly changed it to a sweet smile at his girlfriend who was losing patience and pointing at the stand expectantly. The four wandered up to the booth and let Yamato step towards it the closest, Sora next to him as she picked out which animal she wanted.

"Er, I'll play once," he said, fishing out some bills from his sadly thin wallet.

The girl, whose back was turned while she fixed the targets, nodded.

"I'll be right with you."

He waited. Finally, she turned around and her eyes narrowed in recognition. He realised her as well.

"You're the girl from outside," he identified immediately.

"And you're the guy who kept on trying to give me that weird look."

Sora turned and stared at him, eyes narrowed.

"What look?"

Taichi mocked a horrified gasp, "No—not _The Look_!"

Koushiro's eyes widened.

"You gave her the Ishida Smile?"

"You didn't!" Sora cried.

"Well, I—,"

"Are you out of your mind? You could have paralysed her for life!"

"Hey—what's so bad about my Look?"

"That's just it—it's _yours_," Taichi pointed out.

Sora turned to the girl.

"I'm so sorry, I apologise for my boyfriend's lack of common sense. I hope he hasn't scarred you."

The girl was looking at them as if in a whole new light—not that it was any better than her first impression. Who were these people?

"I don't see what's so wrong about it," Yamato grumbled. "Takeru gets away with his, doesn't he?"

The girl's face flickered into surprise at recognition.

"Takeru? Oh, right, he was talking to your guys."

"You know him?" Koushiro asked.

"We're in the same class."

"I remember," Taichi realised, "you're the girl he didn't want to introduce us to."

"Who are you?"

"I'm his brother, Yamato. You probably heard me from my rock group. We're pretty popular: The Teen-Age Wolves?"

She stared at him blankly.

"I'm Izumi Koushiro, and that's Yagami Taichi and Takenouchi Sora," the redhead introduced, saving Yamato from another embarrassment. The girl brightened.

"Oh yeah, I know you," she pointed at Taichi. "Your Hikari's brother. I'm a friend of hers, too."

"So do we have to ask her to figure out who you are?" Taichi replied innocently.

"Iahii Sayuri."

"Ah, yes," Yamato interrupted, desperate to make up for past actions of humiliation, "Takeru mentioned you before."

Sayuri's eyes narrowed.

"He did."

Yamato didn't realise that it wasn't much of a question but more of a cold repetition of the facts.

"Yep. Says you're terrific at English."

"He _did_."

"Yeah."

"Hm. So are you going to play or not?"

"Oh yeah—," he'd almost forgotten. "Yeah, I am."

Taichi and Koushiro stepped back warily, just in case. Sharp objects and a blonde didn't fit together as nicely as one would like.

-

"I told you to be careful!" Sora said, leading her injured boyfriend to a ice-cold bench.

"I was being careful. That was me being careful," he winced, painfully gripping a mitten around his palm.

His best friend wasn't helping very much.

"I can't believe you stabbed yourself with a dart," Taichi laughed.

"And a dull one at that," Koushiro said, grinning but trying not to, "so it wasn't even sharp."

"Leave it to Ishida," Taichi said, still enjoying the spectacle as he replayed it in his mind.

"Oh, be quiet, both of you," Sora snapped angrily, her arm around Yamato. "It isn't funny."

"Like hell it isn't. That was the best thing I've seen all term. Thanks, buddy, I owe you one. Maybe I won't kill myself tonight."

"And here I was, so looking forward to it," Yamato glared at him.

"Are you sure you didn't puncture anything?" Sora asked worriedly, trying to inspect the wound.

Yamato waved her away.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I told you, it's okay, it's nothing. It'll heal."

"But what if you—,"

"Hey you guys!" Hikari waved at them, holding on to Takeru's arm. Taichi brightened.

"Hey. Where're you two going?"

"Ferris wheel. Want to come?"

"Well—," Taichi glanced back at this best friend, who looked in a considerable amount of pain.

Takeru stared.

"You didn't stab yourself with the darts again, did you?"

Yamato flushed, embarrassed.

"It's not my fault! The game's rigged. Besides, I would have been paying attention if it weren't for that devil of woman running the booth."

Hikari looked confused, "Sayuri? Why, what happened? She didn't do anything, did she?"

"Except egg him on cruelly and distract him," Koushiro said.

"And distract him," Taichi repeated, grinning.

"Why would she—?" Sora started, then realised what he meant and turned to glare at her boyfriend, immediately withdrawing her arm from around him.

"Aw, come on, Sora, I didn't mean it like that!" Yamato started to protest.

"She _was_ pretty cute for a girl her age," Taichi admitted.

Takeru started to agree but bit his tongue, turning pink. Thankfully, no one noticed. He tugged on Hikari's sleeve.

"Come on, before they shut down the rides."

"We'll catch up with you later," Koushiro called after them. Hikari waved good bye.

"Getting colder by the minute, isn't it?" Takeru asked absentmindedly, trying to think of something to talk about that wouldn't make him blush. He really had to earn how to stop blushing as noticeably as he did. Hikari knew this.

"What are you so embarrassed about?"

"Nothing."

Hikari paid for the tickets at the stand, and they stood in line as they waited, for once lost for words. This was rather awkward. She always had something to talk about with him.

Finally it was their turn and the climbed in, Takeru holding her arm gently as he helped her. They sat opposite of each other, and Hikari immediately aimed for the window, peering through the glass. She loved heights. Takeru on the other hand didn't find them half as dazzling as she did. He shivered, rubbing his hands together for warmth, and watched the lights below from a safe corner in the compartment. She turned around to look at him.

"Come on, it's not that high."

"Oh, yeah, it is."

She grinned and shook her head, looking back outside.

"I think I can see the others from here. Yamato's still sitting down. I don't see Sora though."

"Typical. They can't survive a week without getting mad at each other."

"That must prove something."

"That they're the most compatible couple on the planet."

"Always making up in the end."

"Rather entertaining."

She laughed softly, but it died away too soon. He noticed, glancing at her.

"Something wrong?"

She shook her head.

"No, nothing. Never mind."

"Kind of weird, isn't it?"

"What is?"

"The fact that we can't think of anything to say. Usually, we do."

"Yeah," she said slowly, "I guess it is."

"Wonder what it's supposed to mean."

"It doesn't mean anything. It's been a long day. We're both tired."

"It has to mean something—,"

"I don't think so."

He sensed something in those words, and he quickly left the topic alone. After a moment's hesitation, he leaned forward carefully and peered through the glass alongside her.

"Long drop."

"I thought you were the optimistic one out of us."

He grinned.

"Do you think you did well on the test?"

"I hope so. I'm just glad it's all over with."

"What I want to know is why they're even making us go back to school, especially since the exams are done."

"Aren't we going to have a winter party?"

"Do you think I should skip?"

"_Takeru_!"

"I'm just joking. You know I wouldn't. It might give you a heart attack or something."

"I believe you've managed a stroke right now," she feinted a shudder, pressing a hand over her heart.

"Sorry. You okay?"

"Of course."

"No you're not," he cocked his head to the side, studying her carefully and not looking as though he would accept a lie. "You want to tell me what's wrong?"

"I already told you, nothing's wrong. I'm okay. I'm just tired, you know, from studying. Hopefully that party will bring us back into the holiday spirit."

"You're lying."

"Takeru—,"

"All right, fine, don't tell me." He leaned back, turning away from her and looking thorough the opposite window.

"I didn't mean to snap," she apologised later.

"I know."

"Are you…going anywhere this vacation?"

"Up north, maybe skiing. Whatever my mom wants."

"Oh."

"You?"

"I'm staying right here. Daisuke's going to Australia, though."

"Yeah?"

She nodded, "His dad got tickets through his company."

"Yamato's going on a tour with his band, down south. Sora's supposed to go with him, only who knows now…"

"Miyako's going to visit Mimi."

"We should visit her again too, sometime."

"Sometime. Yes."

He tried to be as casual as possible.

"So, any of the people in our class going anywhere interesting?"

"Um…I think Hiro is going to Canada."

"Yeah, he told me about that."

"And Sayuri's going to visit relatives in Germany."

"Germany, huh?"

"Mm. I wish she'd take me. I always wanted to go to Europe."

"Yeah…."

"Takeru, we're friends, aren't we?"

He blinked, sitting up and waking from a daydream.

"What?"

"We're friends, aren't we?"

"Well—yeah. Of course. Shouldn't we be?"

"Yes, we should. Friends." She smiled at him, almost sadly, and he looked at her curiously. "I just hope we stay that way. Stay friends."

"Is that what's been bother you?"

"Well—,"

"Honestly, Hikari, sometimes I just can't figure you out. Of course we'll always be friends. Where do you get this stuff?"

She looked away, gazing at the lights splayed across the ground in festive patterns.

"Why? Don't you want to be friends?"

"Of course I do."

"Well, then why'd you ask?"

"I just—," she searched for a something, "I just wanted to make sure, that's all," she lied. "I mean, all of the things you and I…you're always around whenever I need you and I just hope that you—that it isn't going to stop soon. That is, I hope nothing…changes. And if—well—,"

"Hikari, I'm not just hanging around you to play Lord Protector. I'm your friend. Friends are always there for each other. You'd do that same for me, and wouldn't want to trade places with anybody. And I always will be your friend."

"Just friends?"

"Well, yeah. Always." He didn't appear to understand in the slightest what she meant, so she dropped the subject and smiled at him, pretending to be satisfied.


	4. Chapter 4

_Now_.

The classroom was empty, they were alone. Takeru took a deep breath, face already turning red just thinking about it.

_All right. Calm down. It's only part of the bet after all. You have an obligation to fulfil. No need to be nervous._

He closed his eyes and thought back to the night before. He remembered getting off the Ferris Wheel with Hikari and walking her back to the others, where Taichi informed them that Mrs. Yagami wanted her two children home before frostbite would rid her of them. Takeru said good bye to them, and Hikari said that she had to run errands for the teachers the next morning and told him he should go ahead and go inside the school without waiting for her. He couldn't find Yamato or Koushiro or Sora, so he carefully walked back to the darts game where a bored Sayuri was waiting.

"I see you've come for your humiliating defeat."

"I never lose at these type of things."

She rolled her eyes at his apparent "chauvinistic behaviour" and pointed to the water guns. She went first, missing the first target completely and catching only three of the seven monkeys with the sprays.

Then it was his turn.

He loaded up with as much water as he could and forcefully told himself to not look at her while he shot. He got the target fine, but after his second monkey,some three-year-old kid wandered overto watch and dropped half his ice creamcone andshe'dbent over to help fix his cone so the dessert would stop slipping. Unfortunately for Takeru, he happened to choose that time to glance at her with a victory smirk and wound up missing the last five monkeys, vision completely distracted. She didn't notice his gaze or where it was directed, and only sent the child off his parents and looked back at the game in time to see that she had won. Miserably, but she still won all the same.

As it turned out, they were great at carnival games but totally sucked at water guns (a relatively new unfair addition to the carnival, in Takeru's opinion).

So he lost, and as soon as he realised that, his face coloured the darkest red ever noted by a Japanese person to possess, and Sayuri innocently remarked on it, making him blush even harder. The thought of having to—

Although, he had to admit, it wasn't a _bad_ thought. He had spent the majority of English this term daydreaming about such an opportunity, but it didn't feel right that he had got the chance through a bet.

Ah, forget that.

This was a once in a lifetime type of thing.

Now was the moment. If ever God tried to tell him to go for something, this was definitely it.

He got to school the next morning and was met by an empty classroom and his pretty rival floating around the room as though nothing had happened. Sayuri was looking inside her desk, pulling out her textbooks to prepare for class. Her curly hair was combed half-up and half-down, a few strands left to frame her face. She looked absolutely normal, without a care in the world, and, though she realised he was standing there, didn't seem the least bit embarrassed about what was supposed to happen.

She dropped her eraser and he chuckled at her clumsiness. Which was a bad idea.

"Takaishi!"

"Huh?" _Oh, good one, Takeru. '_Huh_'. Real clever._

"Find my eraser."

"Just buy a new one." That made for a good present. She shot him a deadly glare. _Or not._

He sank to the ground grumbling, scanning the floor through the gaps in between the chairs. She was on her hands and knees, crawling around the desks and muttering something about the incurable imbecility of teenage boys.

How did he ever come to like her anyway? The other guys heard the stories and kept their distance, too well acquainted with her temper. But no. Not Takeru. He just _had_ to get in over his head. Never mind that she had the best left-hook in the school and an impressively long record of making guys cry after a brutal rejection. Never mind that he had no chance, considering her obvious repulsion of him and all members of the human male race, and that he'd be better off digging his own grave. None of these truths made any difference to him, and he was still old-fashioned to hope for a positive change in her attitude, something that was ranked as number one on his never-in-million-years list.

"I thought I asked you to look for the eraser, Takaishi."

"You never _asked_ me anything."

"Didn't anyone ever teach you how to say no? You do a remarkable job at it when the girls swarm over you during lunch. What's the difference from that situation to an eraser-hunt?"

He was awfully glad the chair was blocking them, his ears now a fascinating shade of dark pink.

"Well?" she expected an answer, but the look on her face showed she wasn't interested in one.

He ducked his head down, away from her, and spotted the eraser lying a few inches from his shoe. He grabbed it, almost breaking his elbow as it banged against the leg of the chair.

"Found it," he winced.

"Give it," she turned back towards him.

He grinned. Opportunity.

"What on earth are you smiling about?" she demanded. "You have that same ridiculous look on your face that your brother did yesterday. It's frightening, if nothing else. I'll never understand what's supposed to mean."

It was _supposed_ to be the Takaishi Smile. His grin was slowly being replaced by a frown. Obviously, it didn't work on her. _That_ was a first.

Her hand was outstretched as she leaned forward, reaching for the eraser. He hid it in his hand, fingers enclosed around it tightly.

"You want it, come and get it."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Quit acting like a child and hand it over," she leaned in closer to him.

His free hand shot out and caught hold of her wrist. He pulled her close and with a triumphant smile, kissed her. A book made contact with the side of his face and he fell back, letting go of her.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she cried, leaping to her feet, book still clutched in her hand in preparation for another attack, her other hand clamped over her mouth in shock.

He rubbed his head, struggling to his feet. "Finishing the bet. I had to kiss you, remember?"

She stared at him in disbelief.

"I _cannot_ believe you did that."

"Don't be so quick to judge," he started slowly, grinning. "You didn't let me finish."

Suddenly, he didn't like the look on her face.

"_Finish_?" she repeated.

Maybe that wasn't such a good opportunity.

"You want to _finish_ it, do you?" she asked.

Oh boy. This wasn't good.

He searched for a way out before he was victim to her temper.

"Oh, I'll show you _finished_," she assured, smiling wickedly.

"Hey, come on, Sayuri. That was part of the bet. I had to do it. It was your idea, by the way, you can't get mad at me for—,"

"Who said I was mad?" she was getting far to close to him for comfort.

He panicked, darting to the other side of the room. She trapped him in the aisle.

"Sayuri—,"

"Takaishi, I do believe you've forgotten something," she advanced on him, blocking exits. "You may have kissed me, but that wasn't part of the bet."

"What do you—?"

"I said you had to kiss me in front of the whole class."

"This is the class! 'Course, no one's here. But this _is_ the class—,"

"You know what I meant, Takaishi," she smiled sweetly. That was not a good sign. He bumped into the teacher's table, leaning back against it. She reached him by then, tugging gently at the buttons of his uniform shirt. "I _hate_ guys who think they can take advantage of me."

His eyes widened and he started to shake his head. She pressed a finger to his lips to silence any protesting words, her nose touching his.

"It's time to settle this."

She shoved him onto the desk and he fell back on top of it, papers flying off. Climbing after him, she pinned him down with one hand on his chest as he tried to struggle away in panic.

_This _can't_ be good for hormone control _wasthe first thought that entered his bewildered mind as she crawled on top of him.

"School is about to start," she pointed out, indicating the time from the classroom clock. "They'll be here any second now."

His face burned a brilliant red. There was no way he was going to be caught by the whole class looking like—like—_this_!

"I'll teach you not to play games with me," she said in a dangerously low tone. "_Now_," she pulled herself fully on top of the desk,straddlinghim to keep him from getting away, "we get to _finish_ it."

Taking his face in her hands, she kissed him, her bangs tickling his cheeks. Takeru was too shocked to react to anything, a cold rush sweeping across his body that was immediately followed by a heat wave as his face turned the reddest it had in his short existence. She pulled away once and he gasped, completely thrown off guard.

"That's what you get for acting like the jerk you are," she whispered, touching the tip of her tongue to the spot just below his ear, and he shivered, biting back a groan. She brushed her lips across his cheek before bringing them back to his mouth, the kiss much slower this time to let him get enough taste of it. She teased open his mouth, running her tongue along his teeth, biting on his bottom lip, finally meeting his own tongue.By now he lacked all feeling in his body, frozen up from the simple touch of her skin against his.

Dizzy and weak, he was certain he had lost control of all other bodily functions, but he certainly didn't need to be paralysed to hear the door slide open just then. The usual chatter of the students died down immediately as they caught a glimpse of the spectacle on top of their teacher's desk. The seconds of stunned silence were short-lived.

"Hot _damn_!" one boy whooped and the class exploded. This only made Sayuri kiss him harder, leaving Takeru to helplessly grip the edges of the desk in his frozen hands.

"How come Takaishi always lands himself with the hottest girls?"

"Well, he's certainly landing _something_—,"

"What's going on?"

"Is that _Takeru_? And _Sayuri_?"

"Oh my god!"

"I thought she hated him—?"

"Hell, if that's her hating then I wouldn't mind her loving—,"

"Now _that_ has got to be the best tongue work I've seen this side of the Pacific—,"

"Don't let us interrupt you," a student called when Sayuri paused a moment. "By all means, carry on."

"I give it a nine point eight for performance—,"

"And a ten for _style_—,"

"Exactly what is going on here?" the teacher entered the scene. "I thought I told you all to go to your seats—oh. _Oh_."

She pulled away finally (to the distress of the spectators) and smiled down at him almost shyly.

"I think that's enough for now," Sayuri said softly, breathing just as hard as him, her words not heard by the rest of the gossiping classmates. Takeru found it very difficult to respond after that show, hormones going wild inside him.

Forget his daydreams—that was_way_ more amazingthan anything he could have dreamt up.

Except for the staring audience part.

She sat up straight, still sitting on top of him as she smoothed her skirt and blouse, brushing her bangs back. Casually, she picked herself off the table with ease and calmly walked to her desk, sitting down as though kissing Takaishi was something she did on a normal agenda. The rest of the class wandered back to the their desks in excited groups, clearly pumped up after that entertaining event. Some of the guys crowded around Takeru, who was still lying on top of the desk, blue eyes wide, paralysed and numb with a funny sort of pleased disbelief.

"Hey, Takaishi?" one boy asked, wondering if he should try poking the youth.

"I think he's in shock," another observed.

The third bent down curiously, "He's breathing. Barely."

The second grinned.

"That must have been one _hell_ of a kiss."

"Takaishi, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like my desk back," the teacher said dryly. "And I want to see the both of you after class."

Sayuri smiled innocently, ignoring the looks from the other girls.

"Of course, sir."

-

Takeru slumped over in his chair while the others hurried by him. Some of the guys elbowed him in the arm, grinning and dropping impressed guy codes as they did so. He ignored him, ears pink. He had never been so embarrassed in his life. That was humiliation to the extreme. Now every one would think that he—and the _teacher_—! He whimpered, banging his head on the desk. He couldn't believe this was happening to _him_.

But then he remembered the tingling pressure of her mouth against his, the wayshe'dtasted,and decidedhe could believe it. He only wished it hadn't happened like that—in front of _everybody_. Or that he could have gotten the courage to kiss her back. But at least she had been his for a few minutes. _Yeah right._ More like he had been a manipulated puppet for her rather than she the fulfilment of yearlong obsession for him.

Still, that was one _hell_ of a kiss.

Sayuri was still smiling at the teacher by the time the rest of the class had left, hands clasped in her lap. The teacher cleared his throat.

"Well, that was a…highly amusing…event you two have…entertained us with this morning…. Certainly a nice way to…kick off winter vacation."

"I sincerely apologise for any problems we might have caused, sir," Sayuri said in a foreign tone. Since when was she that nice? Takeru looked up and found the teacher smiling back at her gratefully. Somehow, sucking up to the teacher was worse coming from her than from Hikari.

Takeru shivered. Thank _God_ Hikari hadn't been here. Or Daisuke. Thank _God_ they had to run that errand for the teacher and thank _God_ it lasted the entire time. If they had seen he wouldn't have heard the end of it. Especially from Daisuke, who he knew had been rejected by Sayuri several times already. _Thank you, thank you._

"I tried to warn him, sir, but he just gets so passionate over things."

Takeru stared at her. _What in the hey_?

The teacher chuckled, trapped under Sayuri's spell.

"Well, let's save the…passion for writing and composition next term, shall we, Mr...Takaishi?"

Somebody kill me.

"Now you two…since this is the last day of term, I'm going to let you off for this. But don't think it will happen again…. The next place you choose for your…rendezvous better not be my desk."

"I can assure you it won't happen again, sir. Thank you so much for understanding." Sayuri rose to her feet, still smiling. "I only hope you are our homeroom teacher again next term. Have a wonderful vacation, sir."

"You, too, Miss Iahii," the teacher waved. "Charming young girl," he said after she had left. _Charming, yeah right. _"Well, Mr. Takaishi. I can't say I disagree with your…choice for a lady…but I will say I disagree with your…behaviour. However hard you have it for Miss Iahii, that does not give you permission to…well you know…especially in my classroom. Please leave that for a more…for some other time. After all, you have the rest of your life ahead of you…plenty more Miss Iahiis to come, no need to rush things…. Do you understand?"

Takeru nodded dumbly, not believing his ears. The teacher fidgeted in his chair, pulling on his tie.

"Do you…need me to explain anything…to you, or talk about anything, Mr. Takaishi?"

He stared at him, lost. If his tongue was functioning (which he seriously doubted wouldn't for a considerable amount of time after _that_) he would have asked the teacher, with all due respect, what he was talking about.

"Well, every young man…goes through…well, at one point or another…sometimes little boys develop strong feelings for little girls and then…well, you see…when a boy…that is, when a man…er, when a boy happens to…well, at a certain point in everyone's life…most people's lives…the average person…sometimes…."

Oh God.

Comprehension dawned. Takeru went beet red.

The teacher leaned in uncomfortably, eyes focused on Takeru's pale face.

"Do we need to have _The Talk_?"

Oh God.

He quickly shook his head. The teacher looked relieved.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey! Motomiya!"

Motomiya Daisuke turned around, still holding a stack of papers, his last errand. Hikari, who had been walking with him, also stopped and looked back in the direction of the voice.

A student, Okami Hiro, was running towards them and grinning madly.

"Where were you two?"

"Errands," Hikari pointed to the papers in Daisuke's hands (which she had made him carry).

"Why didn't you hurry up? You missed class!"

"That was kinda the point," Daisuke said, eyebrow raised. "Why? Anything important?"

"Hell, _yeah_! Oh, man, you should have been there. It was so _awesome_."

"What was?"

Hiro started laughing again.

"Sorry—sorry—just thinking about it is funny…."

"What happened?" Daisuke demanded, getting annoyed and feeling a little frustrated that he hadn't been there even though he had no idea what it was. It had to be good, or Hiro wouldn't be dragging it out this long to make him suffer.

"Well, you know how the classroom looks, right?"

"Just spit it out, Okami."

"Okay, okay, jeez. Let a guy have some fun once in a while…." Hiro grinned. "All right. We're walking to school, right? And no one's inside. Well, so we _think_. But then class starts and we all take our time—'cause it is the last day of the term—no big deal, you know. Anyway, we finally get to the door and we're all still talking and everything and so we open the door, right? _And_ _guess what we saw_."

Neither looked in the mood for a guessing game, so Hiro went ahead and blurted it out:

'"Takeru and Sayuri were making out on the teacher's desk."

_Thud_!

Daisuke dropped the stack of papers. "_What_!"

Hikari had a very funny look on her face.

Hiro laughed, "It's true! I swear! We just opened the door as innocent as every other day and there they were, smacking away like there was no tomorrow.Like I told Kioshi, it was the best tongue work this side of the Pacific. Forget the football game last night, this definitely topped it. You two really should have been there." He slapped Daisuke in the shoulder as a manly farewell. "Well, I gotta go. See you around! Good luck next term!"

-

Sayuri was standing in the hall, hands on her hips, looking furious. The second Takeru saw her, he went red. She glared at him.

"This isn't funny, you idiot. Just what the hell are you playing at?"

He stared at her, too shocked to remember blushing.

"What are you talking about? You're the one who threw me on the desk!" he said angrily. "And what are _you_ playing at, sucking up to the teacher like that? You made me look like—like—you made me look bad!"

"Did you _want_ the teacher to call your mother?"

Takeru fell silent, still glaring.

"You listen to me, Takaishi." She wagged a finger in his face, cornering him against the wall. "I do not want you stalking me this holiday. Don't even think of trying to get some more. If you dare come within twelve feet of me I will hurt you beyond all ways possible to humankind."

"You don't scare me—," he started, but hushed up quickly after catching the dangerous look in her eye.

"You had better not have said anything after I left. Why didn't you follow me out right away? You idiot, don't you ever think? You could at least humour me and _try_ once in a while." She backed away, folding her arms over her chest and glaring at him expectantly. Was he supposed to say something? This didn't happen in his fantasies. What was he supposed to do? _Bow_? He waited, wondering, searching for a daydream that might serve up a good line to say to her. She wouldn't let him get past the first fantasy. "What did he say to you?"

Takeru went red again.

Sayuri threw up her hands.

"And why are you _always_ blushing? God, Takaishi! _Control yourself_!"

"You don't want to know what he said."

Sayuri stared at him suspiciously, then stepped back, arms folded. She smiled triumphantly.

"He gave you the sex talk, didn't he?"

Takeru wanted to die.

She smiled again and tossed her hair.

"Don't you love it when the world goes my way?"

"Oh, yeah, I just get _ecstatic_..."

She chose to ignore him, this time. "Anyway, you had better take Hikari out this holiday, or I'll kill you."

He blinked, thrown off guard completely. A silence followed as both waited for the statement to register in his thick head.

"Say wha—?"

"You heard me. Now that I won the bet, I order you to take Hikari out. Somewhere nice. She had better be leaking good details to tell me when I get back."

He stared at her speechless.

"But—but—I don—,"

"Do I have to have my tongue down your throat to get you to obey me?" she snapped angrily. "You're more annoying now then when you tried to sneak all those disgusting looks at me in class."

Takeru's eyes went wide.

"You cheat! How did you know?"

Sayuri rolled her eyes.

"Just shut up and ask her, Takaishi. Is that so hard?"

"Yeah, it is! I can't go out with Hikari! She's my _best_ _friend_! Do you have any idea how awkward that would be?"

"_Awkward_ is having to kiss you. You have no choice but to obey me now or I will blackmail you."

He believed it. "Come on, Sayuri, I'll do anything else except this. It would be like—like—like dating my _sister_—,"

"Well, get over it."

"But I—why should I?"

"She _likes_ you, moron. I have no idea why she picked _you_ out of all people, but for some reason known to God alone, she did. And I refuse to have you break her heart, you self-absorbed, chauvinistic pig. If you do I'll kill you. Painfully and slowly."

Takeru just stared.

"S-she what?" he stammered.

"She likes you. Of course, she won't admit it, but come on, it's about as obvious to figure out as your weird looks."

Nothing in God's earth could have prepared him for this. He just stood there, dumbly. Then he brought a hand to his face, shutting his eyes.

"Dammit."

"You mean you didn't _know_?" Sayuri cried, incredulously. "How could you _not_ know?" Then she stopped her lecture, seeing his expression. "You really _didn't_ know."

His eyes still shut, he said softly, "This wasn't supposed to happen."

"Well, since it did anyway, you're going to ask her, right?"

"You don't understand," he said frustrated. He opened his eyes and glared at the wall. "Hell, neither do I…."

She straightened.

"You'll be fine. Just trust your heart, no matter how disgustingly cheesy that sounds. And if I come back to see her in tears I swear I will kill you, bury you, and dig you up and kill you again." She glared at him. "And stay the hell away from me while you're at it. Have a nice holiday. If you're in the suicidal mood, I won't be in your way. Kiss her good night, too."

Takeru watched her leave absentmindedly, the mention of "kiss" causing his cheeks to turn pink. An eraser flew out of no where and smacked into his forehead. He staggered back, shocked.

"Stop staring, you jerk, and ask her!" she yelled, slamming the door angrily behind her.

He rubbed his head, wincing. He bent down and pocketed the eraser, as a token for the painful memory of his first kiss, knowing full well it would mean his death if she ever found out. He tried hard not to smile, thinking. The grin quickly faded when he heard the door open again and his two closest friends walk in. He immediately turned around and started to run the nearest escape route but a hand grabbed his shoulder, wrenching him back.

"_Takaishi_! Spill it! Did you really kiss Sayuri?"

Takeru flushed a dark red.

"I don't want to talk about it—,"

"Yeah, well, too bad!" Daisuke snarled. "You traitor. You already got the whole damn cheerleading squad. How many more do you need?"

Takeru glanced over at Hikari, who was watching the two of them silently, and he looked away.

"Did you or didn't you?"

Takeru sighed. Daisuke threw up his hands, taking his reaction as an affirmative.

"How the hell did this happen? I thought you two hated each other."

"It was part of our bet."

"_Bet_? What bet?"

"Last night at the school carnival. We made a bet and I lost so she kissed me."

"What the hell kinda bet is that?"

"Our bet, all right?" Takeru was getting angry. Too many things were happening all at once. He couldn't stand it. "It's none of your business anyway."

"Yeah it is!" Daisuke cried. "You just ruined my one chance to ever get with her!"

"You never had a chance in the first place. Look, just leave me alone, all right? I'm going home."

Halfway to his apartment building he heard another set of footsteps. He glared at the sidewalk. Thoroughly annoyed, he spun around.

"Listen, Motomiya, if you don't quit following me, I'll—oh." He stopped, feeling a hot blush creep up his neck. "Hikari. Hi."

She cocked her head to the side. When she finally did speak, it was in the softest tone he had ever heard her talk in. He felt like an idiot.

"You kissed her?"

He looked at the ground, shuffling his feet, embarrassed. "Yes."

"Tell me what happened."

He really did not want to be doing this.

She smiled. "Come on, Takeru, you owe me details. I am your best friend, after all. You're supposed to tell me these kind of things."

He just stared at her, blankly.

"Huh?"

"Well, what happened?"

Wait a minute. What was going on? Shouldn't she be hating his guts by now?

"Okay…our bet was that I'd have to kiss her in front of the entire class if I lost, and she'd have to go out with me if I won. I lost."

"So you kissed her."

"Yeah…."

"It was your idea?"

"Yeah…."

"Well, I wish I had been there."

"Hikari, is something wrong?"

"Wrong? Of course not. Why should anything be wrong?"

He stared.

"Well—I just—I mean I was—thinking—,"

"I think it's good for the both of you. Anyone could see you two liked each other. They'd have to be blind not to see it. After all, there is a fine line between love and hate, right? So it's only natural—and besides, it's about time you found yourself a girlfriend. And I think she's a good choice—,"

"Sayuri is not my girlfriend."

"Well, you kissed her, didn't you?"

"That doesn't—,"

"And it's obvious you like her, right? You've liked for a long time now, I bet. Every since school started and we all met, right? Of course. You know you're supposed to tell me these types of things, we are best friends. I could have helped you. But that doesn't matter now. "

"Hikari, please—,"

"We're going out to celebrate my exam scores but maybe I'll call tomorrow and you can tell me the rest. You know you can ask me anything about—well you know."

"Don't do this, Hikari. Please—,"

"I have to get home now. I'll see you later, then?" Without waiting for a reply, she dashed across the street, waved, and disappeared around the corner.

Takeru watched her, feeling miserable.

If he ever wanted God to tell him something, this would definitely be the time.

-


	6. Chapter 6

He woke up the next morning with a terrible headache. He rolled over on top his back, staring at the ceiling. The memory of yesterday flooded back to him and he shut his eyes and groaned. Maybe he could get his mother to switch schools. Somewhere far away where no would have ever heard about his humiliating defeat in English. He never wanted to see that classroom again.

Sighing, he stumbled out of bed and walked into the door accidentally, falling back on the floor. He groaned again. That kiss really knocked out any memory of normal bodily functions. Or maybe it was signs of illness. _Aha_. Maybe he was dying and had to stay at the hospital. Nobody would ever know about this at the hospital.

He crawled to the kitchen, too tired to pull himself up on his feet, beginning the hide-and-seek game with the aspirin bottle. He briefly entertained the idea of taking an overdose. Nah. It wasn't worth it. He heard voices floating in through the living room and he froze.

Oh _yeah_ it was.

He scurried back around, still on his hands and knees, and desperately tried to get back to his room. Unfortunately for him, his head hit the wall and the conversation died. He wished he could, too.

"Takeru? Is that you, honey?"

"_No_!"

"Come out here, Takeru. Come say hello."

Were those voices getting louder? He panicked. Shuffling towards his room, his voice falling and rising hilariously out of sheer hysteria, he insisted, "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not Takeru. Takeru moved out years ago, remember? I'm—,"

"What are you doing?"

Takeru leaped to his feet, plastered against the wall. Sayuri was standing behind his mother with her arms crossed, and the two of them were staring at him with curiosity.

"Honey, why were you on the floor? Are you hurt?"

"_Mom_! I'm not wearing anything!"

"Not true. You have boxers on."

"Really nice, Takaishi. They bring out your legs," Sayuri smirked evilly.

_Somebody shoot me._

"_Mom_!" he wailed, throwing himself into his room and slamming the door shut. "Why didn't you tell me someone was here?"

"I did," his mother protested. "Don't be rude, Takeru. Come back out here and say hello. She wants to talk to you."

"Well, I don't want to talk to her!"

"Takeru!"

"Wait a minute, Mrs. Takaishi, I have an idea." Sayuri pulled out her cell phone. "What's your son's number?"

His mother beamed.

"Why, aren't you just an intelligent young lady," she said, glowing and hoping her son would open his sleepy eyes and pick this charming girl up. If only children could see what their parents could. She gave her his number and sincerely hoped it worked as she went back to the kitchen. It did.

"Hello?" Takeru's voice sounded very suspicious.

"Morning, Takaishi."

"How'd you get my number?"

She leaned against his bedroom door. "You're mother. She's a very nice woman. Now get out here, you idiot, this is stupid."

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, the rustle of bedsheets in the background.

"I'm just making sure you ask Hikari out today. I want to see you do it or I won't be satisfied."

"I already told you, I'm not asking her out."'

"Well, too bad, Takaishi. I see a change in opinion in your near future."

"I cannot believe you're here. Couldn't you have called?"

"Just hurry up and get dressed. You're wasting my time. I don't see what you're so embarrassed about anyway. It's not much too look at."

"I resent that!"

"Well, it's true. Even Motomiya has a more attractive body—,"

The door flew open and Takeru glared at her, cell phone pressed against his ear.

"I'm _way_ better looking than Daisuke," he snapped into the phone.

"All right. You win that one."

Takeru looked down, realising he still had no shirt on, and slammed the door closed again.

"I hate you," came the reply on the phone and Sayuri smiled.

"Wouldn't want it any other way. Now get out here, you pig."

_The abuse I go through,_ he thought angrily, pulling on a tee-shirt over his jeans. He opened the door again and stomped outside, putting his cell phone in his pocket. Sayuri glared at him, annoyed as she turned her own phone off.

"It's about time. Now tell me what you're going to say to her."

"Nothing. Because I'm not going to ask her."

"You're going to whether you like it or not."

"You can't make me do something I don't want to do."

"I had to kiss you didn't I? Now it's your turn."

"Oh come on. You so liked that."

"Don't be stupid."

"Admit it. I'm a good kisser."

"That was your first time, wasn't it?"

He hated it when this happened.

"Now go on. I want to make sure you don't say anything stupid."

"You don't understand."

"You had absolutely no trouble asking me out."

"But that was different!"

"How?"

"Because I actually liked you."

"Oh shove it. I just ate breakfast."

Why did he like her? Somebody remind him again….

"Besides, I've known her too long."

"All the more reason to ask her."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is."

"No it's not."

"I refuse to play this game."

"You wouldn't have to if you just left."

"I'm not leaving until you pink up that phone and ask her. Now do it!"

He tried to think of something quick.

"Can I write her a letter?"

"No."

"Then I'm not doing it."

"Fine. God, you're so thick. I want to read it later."

"No way! It's private."

"Nothing in you lovelife is private anymore. I made sure of that," Sayuri smiled wickedly. He glared at her. Of course. Yesterday. In front of every living creature in the world.

"You can watch me mail it."

"You're going to give it to her face."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

She smacked him upside the head.

"_Yes_."

"Fine," he rubbed his head, scowling in pain and resentment.

"Good. No go ahead and write. I don't have all day."

Takeru fetched a paper and pen, spending a good twenty minutes pretending to think of what to write until she caught him and yelled at him for a good two minutes. Five minutes after that, rubbing his cheek and wincing, he bent over and carefully penned out the first two sentences. He stopped for a break.

This went on for about three hours. He'd write a sentence or two, stop and rest for five minutes, get yelled at for five, argue for ten, and revise for another fifteen before going on to the next sentence. (His mother was about as deaf as he was thick.) He kept moving to different places around the room, trying to find a spot where she would be able to peek at the note, which he had caught her doing several times. This went into a new argument over privacy and authority and such related topics, which she always won though she never got to take a look at the letter in the end. By lunchtime, he had finished half of what he wanted to say, and complained in such an annoying tone that she practically threw him into the kitchen to eat. After a brief debate over the decline of health awareness of teenagers in a developed country, it was back to writing and drafting.

"You may be good at English," she said after a while, "but you suck at Japanese. Otherwise, it wouldn't be taking you this long."

"I have to find the right words."

"I thought you were a writer."

"This is different than writing a story or essay."

"Whatever. Are you done yet?"

"No."

"I _swear_, Takaishi—,"

"Okay, now I am."

"Let me read it—,"

"Nuh-uh," he shook his head and held it out of her reach. "Remember? I said I'd give it to her face."

"Fine. Come on, let's go."

"You can't come."

"And why the hell not?" she demanded angrily. No one was ever going to tell her what she could or couldn't do.

"If she sees you, she might think—just don't come!" He could feel himself starting to blush again.

"I'll go where I want to go."

"Just—just keep out of sight then. Don't let her see you."

"I'll wait for you in the lobby then. You had better give it to her. Don't think you can trick me. I know all."

"Let's just get this over with."

-

Takeru pressed the doorbell. He waited for a few uneasy minutes until the door opened. Taichi stood there.

"Hey, Takeru."

"Hey. Is, um…is Hikari there?"

"Yeah, one second," Taichi stuck his head back inside. "Hikari!" he yelled. "It's Takeru!"

"In a minute!" she called back.

"Come on in," Taichi held the door open and Takeru ducked inside gratefully. "So how was the last day of school?"

Takeru winced, faking a grin.

"Oh yeah. It was…_memorable_. Hey, weren't you going to kill yourself?"

Taichi waved a dismissive hand.

"I saw the light. And my actual score. I did better than I thought. Maybe I'll kill myself next term."

"Cool."

"Yeah."

An awkward silence settled. Taichi coughed, breaking it.

"So…how's Sayuri?"

"Huh?"

"You know, curly hair, kinda short, feisty, rude, cute, not to mention great betting champion, co-ordinator, and conspirator."

Takeru paled.

"Daisuke told me everything."

"I'll kill him."

"I'm very proud of you. We never thought of the teacher's desk. Good show. Wish I'd been there."

"I'll kill you."

Taichi grinned.

"I'm just joking. Though it is kind of funny."

"Hey, Takeru," Hikari appeared in the room. Takeru was incredibly relieved.

"Hi. I just wanted to talk to you for a second."

"Okay."

They both stared at Taichi, who stared back innocently for a moment until he realised what they meant. "I'll just be in my room…if anyone cares…."

Takeru waited until the door shut before turning to look at her, trying to smile so not to show how nervous he was.

"How are you?"

"Good."

"Good. That's…good. Um, listen, I was thinking about…I mean—I was just kinda wondering if—well I thought I should give you this—so here," he thrust the letter into her surprised hands.

"What is it?"

"A letter. I wrote. For you."

"Aren't you supposed to mail these?"

"Yeah well, I thought it would be—well, I just wanted to…give it to…myself. So…yeah. Okay."

"Can I open it?"

"Sure. But wait until I'm gone," he grinned, turning pink, and darted out the door. "Call me, later, okay? I just need you…to, you know, reply…but anyway, I'll see you later, okay?" The door quietly clicked shut behind him.

He leaned back against it on the other side, trying to breathe easy. He closed his eyes for a moment. That wasn't too bad. Of course, she hadn't opened it up yet. He quickly hurried to the elevator and back to the first floor. He was about to leave whenSayuri materialised out of no where. He jumped back, startled.

"Well, what happened?"

"I don't know. She hasn't read it yet."

"What do you mean she hasn't?" she demanded. "I thought you said you'd give it to her."

"Yeah, but I never said anything about actually waiting around for her to read it. She'll call me later."

"You idiot. Now I have to wait!"

"You lucky girl, you."

-

Hikari stared at the closed door, not really knowing what to do. This wasn't anything what she had expected. She stared down at he envelope, then carefully turned it over and pealed off the sticker he had used to close the flap. Out fell a single sheet of folded up notebook paper. She sat down, balancing it on her lap, her bangs falling down in front of her face a little as she bent over to read it.

_Dear Hikari,_

_I really don't know how to say this, actually, but I guess I should let you know.  
__Remember the conversation we had on the Ferris wheel? Well, I was just thinking about it and I just realised how much it meant to me. Sometimes I really don't think you understand how important you are to me. But you are. I hate to think that one day someone else will sweep you right off your feet and away from me forever. Sometimes I find myself wondering if I were that someone. But I'm not. But what we've been through these past years still means a lot to me. It reminds me I always have someone I can turn to, no matter what. And I need that more than I need a girlfriend. And so I need you. I'm just afraid that you don't understand what I mean when I say this.  
__Hikari, we're always going to have ups and downs, because that's what makes up friendship. But I want you to be the person I always have in my life to come back to when things don't work out. And even when they do work out, I still what you to be the person I tell first. Someday someone out there is going to walk into your life and he'll be luckiest guy to ever live and I'll be the loneliest. Then maybe you'll see what I mean. I'm not him, and I don't deserve to be. I couldn't give you what you need, but I know he could. I love you, but not the way you need to be. You'll know it when you see it, and you'll know him when you see him. But he's just not me. It's a long wait, but it's worth it. I promise you it is. I'll still be here to keep you company, and I'll still be here afterwards, too. That's what friends do, so that's what I'm going to do.  
__Mathematics just doesn't make sense without you. And my life just wouldn't be the same. These years we've been friends, I hope they stay as much in your memory as they will in mine. Promise to hang in there with me?_

_Always,  
__Takeru_

-

**The End... Okay, okay, sequel to be posted soon entitled "The Challenge"...**


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